I’d been working really hard on my first-ever children’s book and was so excited for it’s spring 2020 release. Called Proud to Play, it’s about the experience of Canadian LGBTQ athletes in professional sports. The topic was so important ... Read More  

The Boreal Forest: A Year in the World's Largest Land Biome, has been nominated for a Yellow Cedar Award in the 2021 Forest of Reading! I am both thrilled and honoured to be in such great company, so I've ... Read More  

It's mid-December, and you know what that means: New Year's Resolutions are just around the corner.  I'll be honest. I've never found classic resolutions particularly helpful. In fact, they're more likely to produce feelings of guilt and inadequacy than happiness ... Read More  

I love writing science fiction. My very first four books were science fiction: time travel dystopian novels about climate change, corporations taking over the world, false prophets and utopias. Hmm. That was 33 years ago! Seems like I was either ... Read More  

Sooner or later, every writer is going to have to interview an expert. Students might be required to do so for an assignment; for creative writers, interviews are sources of stories, anecdotes, quotes, and details that can't be gleaned ... Read More  

Two things you might not have known about me: We moved around a LOT when I was young, so I was the new kid right up until high school. I was a gifted kid who learned quickly and tested very, very ... Read More  

Now and then illustrators get projects that aren’t straightforward, and not only challenge our technical skills but also our ability to research. I was thrilled when I signed my first illustration contract for a children’s poetry book titled “Recess ... Read More  

Last fall, I was lucky enough to visit the ruins of Pompeii. October not withstanding, it was a hot, sunny day, even first thing in the morning when our tour group arrived. In the distance, the green slopes of ... Read More  

Today we're continuing our discussion of research, with a focus on a special type of primary source - the expert. First, what do I mean when I say "expert"? As a former scientist and writer of sciencey books, I ... Read More  

It's almost Remembrance Day in Canada, so it's high time for a special edition of Cantastic Authorpalooza. Today, I'm welcoming my not-so-evil stepmother, Jaqueline Carmichael, who is celebrating the release of her newest book, Heard Amid the Guns: True ... Read More  

It all began at the Vancouver Aquarium where the instant I first saw sea otters, I was smitten! Cuteness overload! Especially when they linked paws! But it got even better. I was amazed to learn that in the wild, ... Read More  

YOU GUYS. The Boreal Forest has been nominated for a YELLOW CEDAR AWARD in the FOREST OF READING. If you're not familiar, the Forest of Reading is the largest recreational reading program in Canada. Kids across the country can register ... Read More  

Last time we compared primary and secondary sources and talked about how to use them when researching writing assignments or creative projects. Today, we're getting a bit more practical, with some tips for finding and accessing peer-reviewed journal articles, ... Read More  

Once upon a time, I had a dream: I wanted to write nonfiction. Keep in mind, this was many years ago, and I came from a poetry and fiction background. I had been writing poetry since I was six, ... Read More  

It's Science Literacy Week!  *Fires cannons full of biodegradable confetti* The brainchild of Jesse Hildebrand, Science Literacy Week started as a grassroots initiative meant to raise awareness about science: what it is, how it works, and why it's awesome. It's grown ... Read More  

We are going to be devoting many Teach Write columns to the intricacies of research for student and professional writers. Today, we are starting with the fundamentals: the difference between primary and secondary sources. Students need to understand this ... Read More  

While selecting a drone, it is imperative to first define the mission. Missions fall under the Ds category – for example, Dull, Dirty, Dangerous, Difficult, Dash, Delivery etc.  ‘Dull,’ synonymous with ‘boring,’ is exactly that – a mission that ... Read More  

Ghost. That one word has a strange power. All I have to do is announce that I’m going to tell a ghost story and children sharpen to attention. Grownups too. It seems that we are all touched by ghosts, ... Read More